Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
“So, what? A pro?”
“I have Arty on that now. And the guys are working on getting the body out of there.”
“Wait… what happened after? What’d you say to the girl? She heard a woman scream.”
“She heard a loud bang too,” York said. “I convinced her that Lula had a nightmare and then fell out of bed. And that I had to get her to the hospital. It was mostly true, at least. I got her out of there then went back for Lula. That about sums things up.”
“How was she right after?” I asked.
“A little disassociated,” Velle supplied. “I get the feeling she’s not someone who is used to being taken care of.”
“No.”
“And maybe strong and independent… almost to a fault.”
“That’s her.”
“Teddy said she was quiet on the ride but kept putting her hand up to her cheek.”
“Bastard knocked her tooth out.”
There was a chorus of hisses.
“It was a back one, thankfully. But it’s gotta be sore.”
“I’m sorry,” York said, shaking his head.
“This isn’t on you. This is on me.”
“I’m gonna be the level-headed one here and say it’s that Drake asshole’s fault.”
“I wanna know how he knows we’re not only in town, but where to find Lula.”
“That’s a good question,” Huck said. “But maybe for tomorrow.”
“And what about tonight?” I asked. “I can’t make her go back to that house. Can one of you recommend a good hotel?”
“I could,” Huck said, nodding. “Or Teddy offered his penthouse. I’m offering the clubhouse. If this guy is pissed that he failed and wants to come again, Lula would be surrounded by a lot of guys with guns.”
“Yeah, but you and Che have families there. Think maybe a hotel is a good bet. A penthouse with a private elevator. That leads into a vestibule or hallway, not the suite itself. Any ideas?”
“Teddy has a few of those. I’ll get him on picking the one he thinks has the best security.”
“Thanks. Anything else?”
“About Slash…” Huck said.
Shit.
“Yeah,” Huck said, nodding. “I had a feeling this was something you didn’t let your president in on.”
“It wasn’t really my business.”
“Maybe it wasn’t until you involved my club. But now we’re involved. And I don’t want to be keeping shit from Slash. I won’t force your hand on when, but I want him debriefed.”
“I’ll do that. You understand not being in a rush,” I said, glancing over at the door, wondering how Lula was doing in there.
“Yeah. But within the next few days.”
“Got it.”
“Alright. I think that’s it for now,” Huck said. “Go check on your girl. Let me know if she needs anything. I’ll go talk to Teddy.”
“I appreciate it. Really. I’m sure getting rid of a body wasn’t on your bucket list tonight.”
“This is Florida, man,” Huck said with a smile. “We got built-in corpse removal animals. We know the locations of a lot of groups of crocs. Never had an issue getting rid of something.”
“Even the bones?”
“All those teeth, but they don’t chew. Swallow everything whole,” Huck said.
“And they have the most acidic stomachs of any animal,” York piped in. “Can dissolve anything… even bones.”
No wonder no one seemed particularly worked up about a body lying around.
“Either way, I appreciate it.”
“You’ll make it up to me when you deliver that gun Murphy is designing.”
With that, I made my way back to the exam room, finding Lula’s face cleaned up but the bruises settling even darker than before.
“How’s the patient, Doc?”
“She’s going to be just fine. Sore, obviously. But it’s all superficial bruising. No fractures or anything like that. As for the tooth, it was completely avulsed, so I irrigated the wound and stuffed it with gauze. Lula already knows she needs to bite down on that for thirty to sixty minutes to make sure a good clot forms. No straws. Soft foods. The usual kind of things you’d hear when a tooth is pulled. Obviously, you’re going to want to follow up with a dentist.”
“Definitely on the list,” I said, giving Lula’s thigh a squeeze. “Anything else?”
“Lula is very out of date for a tetanus booster, so I am going to give her that. As well as some pain meds. I’m going to hold off on prescribing an antibiotic, but if you notice any signs of an infection—fever, swelling—I want to know right away. Otherwise, a dentist will do the follow-up.”
“Great. Thanks so much for coming in this late, Ama.”
“Yeah, thank you,” Lula said with a mouth full of gauze.
“I’m just going to go get your shot. Then write up your scripts. Then you can be on your way. I’m sure you’re both exhausted.”
“We’re not going back to the beach house,” I told her when we were alone, tucking some hair behind her ear. “Huck is talking to Teddy about which hotel has the best room for us. Seems safest for the time being.”
“Safest?” she asked, her voice a jumble of sounds.